ORLANDO — Urban Meyer stood on stage, turned his phone horizontally and panned the crowd from right to left.
Even the national championship-winning coach had to capture this scene.
FOX’s big kickoff at noon hit UCF before Saturday’s showdown between the Knights and Colorado Buffaloes. It was the first time the program had been broadcast since a university in Floridaand it did not disappoint.
The network announced that the crowd was the largest in the history of the show.
“It’s awesome to see how Knight Nation delivers on things like this,” said Jimmy Skiles, UCF athletics brand director.
Big Noon Kickoff scouted UCF ahead of Week 5
UCF-Colorado was on FOX’s short list of potential destinations heading into the Knights’ game against TCU, a 35-34 win two weeks ago. Network officials visited campus Sept. 18 while UCF was enjoying its break.
Meanwhile, Colorado sneaked past Baylor last Saturday, only adding to the game’s intrigue with a game-tying Hail Mary in the final seconds before clinching an overtime victory.
Skiles watched the Buffaloes from a tent at Fort Wilderness. He started the competition on his phone while his son was already sleeping next to him.
“I think if Colorado loses, we’ll probably be out of contention,” Skiles said. “Then they get this (a spectacular win) and I’m like, ‘Ahhhh.'”
FOX revealed Orlando as its landing spot a few hours later Sunday.
What the Big Noon Kickoff Was Like at UCF
The show runs from 10 a.m. to noon, but fans have filled the Memory Mall on the UCF campus well before that. They endured high temperatures in the 80s and 80 percent humidity, which made panelist Mark Ingram sweat through his suit.
The people present didn’t care.
“Seeing everyone, seeing all these Knights fans coming out and having a good time, you know you have a lot of support,” said Cameron Ezazi, a Bradenton native who enrolled at UCF as a student diploma. “Everyone is ready to bounce in the Bounce House.”
They held signs reading “Colorado’s Worst Knightmare” and “Even Aflac Won’t Cover This Loss,” mocking Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders and its insurance advertisements.
DJ Khaled and Fat Joe performed during several commercial breaks. During the song “All I Do Is Win,” Meyer smiled and took out his phone, recording a quick video as fans raised their hands in the air.
Khaled then dove into the pit to attempt mass surfing. It only lasted a few seconds.
Later, former UCF and NFL wide receiver Brandon Marshall attempted to do the same thing by making an appearance.
The Big Noon Kickoff team of Meyer, Ingram, Charles Woodson, Brady Quinn, Matt Leinart and Rob Stone welcomed Knights coach Gus Malzahn for an interview. Malzahn talked about what it means to be in a Power Four conference.
“There are no limits,” he said.
This earned me applause.
Afterward, Meyer described the excellence of Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter.
This received a chorus of boos and chants of “RJ Har-vey” broke out.
Around noon, the panelists made their predictions. Meyer, Leinart, Ingram and Quinn all chose UCF while Woodson chose Colorado.
Regardless, the Knights won.
“You think about Big Noon’s footprint,” Skiles said. “It’s a Midwest and West Coast pregame show just because of who they’ve had in the past — Pac-12, Big Ten schools on FOX.
“So for them to be here and be exposed to our brand and expose our brand to people all over the Midwest, all over the West Coast, they wake up and see this crowd at UCF. It’s just great.
UCF has previously hosted ESPN College GameDay
ESPN’s College GameDay emanated from Orlando before a UCF-Cincinnati game in November 2018. Ezazi was also there.
“It seems like there are a few more people here (today),” he said. “But it’s the same vibe. This is a group of people here watching a team on the rise, ready to come and kick some butt. The atmosphere is simply great every time.
It was an American Athletic Conference game. The Knights were the plucky new underdog on the national landscape after a 12-0 season in 2017.
Now, they occupy a different place in the college football landscape. And with such attention, 3-0 record with Coach Prime’s Buffaloes in townit grows.
“Coming to a campus we’ve never been to, we always like to build the Big Noon brand and build excitement,” Ingram told reporters Friday. “Our show is about energy. It’s about the fans. Being able to come to a place where they are happy to welcome us is always a plus.
They certainly found it on Saturday.
This article originally appeared in the Daytona Beach News-Journal: Big Noon Kickoff Completes Energetic Trip to Florida, Expanding UCF Brand
